Biotech Updates

EuropaBio Position Paper on Biotech SMEs

October 16, 2009

Some 20% of Europe's biotech companies, most of which are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are hard hit by the financial crisis and may not be operational in 2010 if no immediate action is taken. About 78% of biotech SMEs are already struggling and cannot find the investment required to continue their research and development programs. These facts were raised in Time for Action: the Financial Crisis and Biotech SMEs released by EuropaBio, the European Association fo Bioindustries.

EuropaBio suggested the following recommendations to secure investments in biotech innovation:

  • Make the European funding instruments more accessible to biotech SMEs
  • European institutions should develop a short term investment vehicle to increase risk capital for Venture Capitalists
  • Make maximum use of the European State Aid uding the crisis
  • Develop measures and opportunities to capture the value of research within Europe
  • Make the EU Framework Programme for Research more attractive for biotech SMEs

The full EuropaBio press release is at http://www.europabio.org/positions/white/Financial-crisis06.pdf